Akaneko
by Sarryn
Summary: It's really starting to get strange, but it's been updated so all rejoice. Will Knives be sane at the conclusion? This question and more will be answered, or not. Vote for who should pair up or I'll have to choose, a very scary thought.
1. Default Chapter

Akaneko is, because I say so, that little red cat shown at the beginning of the Flying Ship episode

Akaneko is, because I say so, that little red cat shown at the beginning of the Flying Ship episode. You know when Milly was using her tracking device to find Vash and it turned out to be two cats under the bed eating his breakfast? Well the little red cat there has been named by me as Akaneko. Oh and this is another one of those "what is with that black cat?" sort of thing. I hope its original. Two more things and then I'll stop I swear, 1) this is after the whole series, 2) REVIEW, please?

Akaneko

Knives opened his sapphire eyes and stared at the offending weight on his chest. The red cat raised its head and 'mreowed' loudly, green eyes closed to slits. He ground out a curse and lashed out at the creature. A moment before his hand would have connected with its body; the little cat darted off the bed and disappeared into the shadows surrounding the room. 

Chest heaving from his exertion, Knives settled back against the lumpy pillow under his hand. Why did all the imperfect beings in the universe decide to pester him while he was in such a vulnerable state? If those two damnable girls his brother was with weren't bad enough, that stupid cat had decided to watch him. It always stared at him with those eerie green eyes, strangely reminiscent of his brother's own sea-green orbs. Vash had mentioned that a black cat had, for some reason or other, randomly appeared wherever he went.

We are more alike than you know, he thought to his slumbering brother a few rooms down. Now they both had stupid fur-balls stalking them.

***

A soft amber glow pierced the dazed man's barely opened eyes as he struggled back into consciousness. Everything was so warm, it was like he was wrapped in a gold blanket of comfort.

"I see you've finally arrived Chapel."

Everything snapped into focus as Nicholas D. Wolfwood gasped in shock. That coldly silken voice, he recognized it. Instinctively his hand reached for the Cross Punisher that was no longer there. Feeling his hands closed upon empty air he reeled away from the darkly glowing being.

"Legato," he hissed, staring into the golden eyes of his enemy. "What are you doing here?"

"You don't even know where here is," Legato scoffed, a condescending smile on his face, blue hair falling to obscure the burning flames in his eyes.

"Sine you're here I'm assuming it's hell," the priest retorted, drifting a short distance away. Of course distance was an impractical term since there was no dimension, no up or down. Everything was a faded amber color, unmoving and unchanging.

"We might be, considering we're dead," the psychopath admitted laconically. Wolfwood's blue eyes narrowed dangerously. How could this monster find their situation so damned amusing? "The others are here as well," Legato continued. "Seems as though all of our Master's minions have traveled here after their deaths."

"I died before you, you nihilistic bastard," Wolfwood raged, furious at having been put in the same category as those other slaughter-mad fiends. Though in truth he was more upset over the fact that that assessment was completely accurate. He had yielded his soul to Knives for the kids and that man always collected his debts.

"Well, you're purer than the rest of us. You didn't completely sell your humanity for the cause," the blue-haired man replied with an indolent shrug. "Still, here you are."

"Don't bicker you two," a new, masculine voice chided with indulgent amusement. The two turned to regard the intruder.

Hovering a few feet away was a black-haired man with vibrant green eyes. He cradled a nubile young woman, her aqua eyes regarded them quizzically from underneath the red bangs that partially shielded her face. 

"Who are you?" Wolfwood demanded, Legato settled for looking mildly interested. He gave off the air of one who was waiting to see if the upcoming show was worth his attention or not.

"I'm sure you've seen me around," the man replied, unwinding his arms from around the young woman. The woman, perhaps more like girl for she couldn't be older than seventeen, stretched lazily and drifted closer to the two men, her rather translucent white dress shifting about her shapely thighs.

"I don't think so," the priest retorted.

"Oh I didn't look like this," the man laughed gesturing at himself, he was clothed in a nothing more than a pair of dress pants, "I was…furry."

"What are you talking about?" Wolfwood demanded angrily, he didn't like being toyed with, especially when he was dead and stuck in the same vicinity as Legato.

"The black cat, you know the one that always shows up wherever you go," the girl informed them as she waited patiently between the two dead men.

"What? How?"

"They want us to keep an eye on those two troublemakers that have made life on that desert ball rather…interesting," the black-haired man replied. The girl nodded in confirmation, her aqua eyes earnest and knowing. Neither had to ask who the two troublemakers were, they had a pretty good idea of who the two meant.

"Who's they?" Legato asked, deigning to speak to the two odd people. The girl drifted closer to him, her entire focus center solely on him.

"The plants," the man replied straightening up, a flash of interest shown in Legato's eyes, "Those two are their appointed guardians, their independent appendages if you will."

"You smell like both of them," the girl commented, her delicate nose twitching slightly as she sniffed at Legato. Come to think of it she did move with an uncanny cat-like fluidity, Wolfwood thought.

Without any warning the girl grabbed Legato's face and gave him a deep kiss. The priest could only stare at the two in shock. What was that crazy girl doing now? Horror plainly expressed on his face he turned to look at the man who claimed he was a cat. The man's arms were crossed and as amusement danced in his emerald eyes. Apparently he didn't give a whit if the girl went around kissing dangerous men.

"But you don't taste like them," the girl announced pushing herself away. There was something almost disappointed in her manner, like a child who had found out that the toy wasn't as good as she had expected. Legato stood there a look of dark humor on his face, cruelty reflected in his predatory, golden eyes.

"The twins have drifted off course during the past decades. One was almost fanatic in his devotion to us and his brother," the man replied with a bemused shrug, "The other's concern centered solely around humanity. We had hoped that the two separate ideals planted earlier on would have come into a harmonious fruition, it didn't."

"But now it might, if everything goes well," the girl added as she went to the man. "It's so hard to tell how experiments will react in a chaotic environment."

"Are you telling me Vash and Knives were merely your 'experiments'?" Wolfwood demanded, Legato looked disinterested in the whole affair.

"Isn't life just an experiment?" the man countered, taking the young woman into his arms again. "We were worried for awhile that they would have to be terminated and new guardians created. Fortunately it didn't prove so. After all it is rather difficult to create here when your entirety exists outside of what humans call time."

The girl gave a little wave and the two slowly faded from view.

"But why are _we_ here?" Wolfwood demanded furiously of the vanished pair. Legato laughed cruelly, the priest shot him a dirty look which only made him laugh harder.

***

A dark frown marred Knives face as he was awakened to a familiar weight on his chest. It was that damned cat again. What was going on in its limited mental facilities that caused it to sit on his chest in the middle of the night and wake him up? 

"Get off," he hissed, not bothering to open his eyes.

"But it's quite comfortable," a sweet feminine voice remarked with guileless innocence. His eyes flew open in surprise and found that instead of the red-furred creature was a redheaded young woman. No she was more like a girl, she didn't look any older than sixteen or seventeen. 

"Who the hell are you?" he demanded angrily, being unable to place her face. Great, he was now being mauled by random females from the degenerate species known as Homo sapiens. 

Without waiting for her answer, and not particularly caring, he twisted violently in an attempt to dislodge the offending being. His wounds screamed out and he bit back a cry of pain. The girl countered his sudden motion with an uncanny gracefulness. When his tired and agony filled body settled back the redhead settled herself back down. 

"If it hurts you shouldn't do that," she advised him sagely. 

"How did you get in here?" he grated out. If his strength was back he would've throttled her or perhaps snapped her neck, either way her annoying presence would be gone.

"The door," she answered precisely, smiling serenely. He wasn't amused by her response.

"I could kill you," he told her with a cockiness that would have proved more effective if he hadn't winced as she shifted her weight.

Without warning she sprawled atop him, her face hovering above his own. She had the most unsettling look of scientific inquiry on her face. As if he was some fascinating new specimen and she couldn't wait to dissect him. 

"He doesn't taste like you," she informed him, becoming thoughtful. "He tastes…dark." 

A sudden fury overtook him and he grabbed her slender neck with a strength he wouldn't have ordinarily possessed. He had no doubt of whom she spoke of and he wasn't happy about it. He could strangle her, snap her neck and no one could stop him. A dark sense of power took root in him, the same feeling he had lost after the final confrontation with his dear brother.

"You dared touch my brother?" he demanded coldly, squeezing his hand against her windpipe. She stared down at him with blithe unconcern about her dire predicament.

"Of course not," she laughed airily even as he exerted more pressure. The only signs of discomfort were the slight spasms beneath his crushing hand. "He's not part of my assignment."

"What assignment?" he inquired silkily, sapphire eyes burning with an unholy light. 

"Akaneko," came a warning voice from the other side of the room. The girl blinked twice, a guilty flush creeping across her elegant cheeks. Without even trying she broke from Knives' grasp and jumped off him, ignoring the grunt of pain from her 'chair'.

"I wasn't doing anything," she said with the petulance of a young child.

A tall, dark-haired man detached from the nighttime darkness that settled like a funeral shroud in the small room. Gently he enfolded the redhead in his arms and the two faded from sight. His last impression, before he slipped abruptly in dreaming, was a pair of burning aqua eyes.

***

Thank you for reading my little endeavor, please review because it would make me incredibly happy. Of course you all don't care, but that's okay. I try to get the next chapter out real soon in case you guys like it.


	2. Chapter 2

I said that I'd write the next one pretty fast

I said that I'd write the next one pretty fast. I'm sure you're all surprised at how strange this is, well so am I. Anyway, please review and I'll write more.

Akaneko

"Why did you call me back, Kuroneko?" Akaneko asked, still pouting. She had found her new assignment quite intriguing and was rather miffed at her mentor for calling her back before she had fully satisfied her curiosity.

"Curiosity killed the cat. Besides he isn't ready for it all," the black-haired man replied as he gently massaged ointment into her badly bruised neck. "They haven't given you permission to confront him in this form."

"I didn't get to taste him," she muttered indignantly, propping her delicate chin on her raised knees, tightening her arms around them. Life just wasn't fair, they never let her do anything.

"You're still a novice, you'll stop having to taste your assignments to understand them soon," he informed her kindly. She winced as he encountered a particularly deep bruise with his steady fingers.

"If I'm such a novice how come I was given the more unstable twin?" she demanded hotly. He laughed softly, giving her head a playful tap with his knuckles.

"At the time I was commissioned he wasn't the one getting into trouble every couple of seconds like the other," Kuroneko replied with an indulgent chuckle. His fingers stilled as he became lost in his own nostalgic reveries. Akaneko rolled her aqua eyes and rammed her head non-too gently into his chest.

"If you're so fond of that spiky blonde how come you scratched him once?" she inquired sweetly while he complained about forming bruises on his own body now.

"He was going to mess up my fur," her mentor replied with mock haughtiness. "A cat's body would not have been my first choice for observing. Grooming and personal hygiene is horrible."

Personally she was rather fond of her cat body, after all while she wore it she possessed an incredibly agility and her senses were more acute as well. Then again she couldn't talk and was more likely to be kicked around. Some people just didn't like cats, that she had found out quite quickly. After a couple experiences she had learned how to identify that kind of person with only a ten-percent margin of error.

"How come you never showed him your human form?" the girl asked, stretching her legs out lazily.

"I was expressly forbidden by them as you were," he informed her with an edge of disapproval in his voice.

"You're wrong about that," she retorted with superiority. "They never said I couldn't do that, they just never said I could either."

"Well, perhaps," he conceded grudgingly. "But nonetheless, don't do that again until you gain permission."

"I think I'll visit Legato," she announced suddenly, twisting from his grasp. He arched a questioning brow, elegantly fingered hands resting lazily on his knees. She gave him a coquettish wink and walked off.

"Minx," he whispered with affectionate fondness.

***

Soft golden light filtered down between the gauzy eggshell white curtains and gray motes of dust danced languidly in the hot air. When the door creaked open Knives' sharp eyes snapped there, instinctively reacting to the possibility of a threat.

"At least it isn't that cat and now that girl," he muttered as his brother entered the room carrying what he assumed was breakfast.

"Hello…cat and girl?" Vash asked giving him a strange look. Knives remained silent on the matter and his brother let it rest with a sad sigh. "Well, anyway, I brought you breakfast," he told him brightly.

Knives' eyes narrowed with suspicion as he took in his brother's fairly glowing face. There was an air of relaxation that hadn't characterized him the last time he had visited. With a burst of jealous rage he realized the exact origin of this change in his brother.

"You finally slept with that human, didn't you?" he demanded coldly. Vash's back stiffened visibly at his brother's harsh tone and choice of subject.

"How?" he asked softly, a new wariness entering his voice.

"You're glowing," Knives sneered, "I can practically see her taint on you, you reek of her imperfection."

"I will not discuss this with you, it's a private matter," Vash told him with barely contained outrage. The man on the bed laughed scornfully, his whole attitude radiating contempt.

"I'm closer to you than that _woman_ will ever be," he told Vash with a deadly seriousness, all humor wiped from his countenance. "She's merely human, she'll die and then where will you be?"

Vash turned to regard him with sorrowful sea-green eyes and Knives knew he had hit a sore spot. He felt a cruel sort of triumph and allowed his face to reveal this. 

"Perhaps, but that isn't for a long time," he replied stoically. Without another word he placed the tray on his brother's lap and exited the room. 

"She's only human," Knives repeated to the empty room. So why had he chosen her over his own twin brother? 

He stared into the soup as if it held the answers to his current situation. 

***

"You knew him pretty well," Akaneko began as she cornered Legato in the void. He regarded her enigmatically, a cold smile playing across his lips.

"He is my master," he replied serenely.

"Yes, well, so you could you tell me something about him. All I know is what they have deigned to tell me, which isn't much," she admitted wryly. Legato regarded her calmly, seeming to judge her worthiness of such information. 

"He is a superior being," he said at last, "Humanity is merely a corruptive plague that sweeps across the universe and he is here to stop it." She stared at him blankly for a few moments.

"His personality modifications were more than merely successful," she remarked thoughtfully. "He immersed himself completely in the role."

Legato apparently decided to make no comment on her last remark and regarded her with a bored expectation. She taped her bottom lip thoughtfully as she considered how she should best observe him. But how did they honestly expect her to be able to do that effectively if they didn't give anything to go on.

"I didn't even get to taste him," she pouted. Until she became more experienced, as Kuroneko kept telling her, her only way to understand someone was to taste him or her. 

She was startled out of her musings when a pair of cool hands touched her face. Akaneko blinked in surprise as she stared into a pair of coldly burning golden eyes. 

"I can smell him on you," he told her softly, deeply inhaling, his eyes momentarily drifting shut. When they opened again they held within their burning depths an odd intensity. She stood within is grasp without moving, curiosity as to what he was doing blocking out reason and logic. He was acting abnormal and she wanted to know why. 

His tongue flicked out and swept across her lips, "But I can't taste him." He let her go, disappointment obvious beneath his coldly enigmatic exterior. 

A sudden thought struck her as she processed his comment. She was going to get him a present so he'd tell her something more substantial. She didn't care what Kuroneko said, she was going to be doing this observation her own way. 

***

Thanks for reading and I guess I'll start writing the next one. Please review, and that's about all I have to say.


	3. Chapter 3

Okay, I've re-looked at the picture and the cat's more of a reddish-brown, but I'm still calling her red in case anyone cares

Okay, I've re-looked at the picture and the cat's more of a reddish-brown, but I'm still calling her red in case anyone cares. Knives is probably going to be way out of character, but I'll try hard not to have him that way. Please be kind and review, thought I was going to say rewind didn't you? 

Akaneko

Not again, Knives raged as he felt an all too familiar weight compressing his ribcage. Why couldn't they leave him alone? He was beginning to think there was a huge, flashing neon sign above his head that said, "All cats and odd girls, sit on my chest." Of course this time he was prepared for such an intrusion. He kept himself perfectly still, as though still asleep, even as he tensed his muscles.

Without warning he lashed out and felt a small burst of triumph as his hand connected with a pliant, furry body. With a pained shriek the cat flew off the bed and thumped against the wall on the opposite side of the room. He gave a grunt of satisfaction, dragging his weak body into a sitting position, as the little monster remained motionless in the corner. Closing his eyes he sank back into the bed that had been his world ever since he had awakened.

"That wasn't very nice," the cat…no girl declared as it/she stood up. Gingerly she ran her pale hands through her disorderly red hair.

"What are you?" he demanded staring at the odd creature before him. 

"Well, since the cat is out of the bag, so to speak," she began ruefully, "I'm the little red cat that's been stalking you."

"I think I figured that out," he told her blandly. "What species are you? You can't be human. Unless those worthless beasts have managed to suddenly evolve, which I doubt considering how pathetic they are."

She stood up and moved gracefully over to him, "Of course I'm not human. I'm your own personal observer." He stared her for a while, wishing he had taken his previous opportunity to snap her neck instead of strangle her. He had been so involved with her lack of visible suffering that he had inadvertently allowed her to live. 

"I'm not supposed to let you see me like this, but, well, hitting that wall really hurt," she told him glibly, aqua eyes wide and expressive. She wasn't accusing him of being responsible for her impact even though she had to be aware it was his fault. There was something too innocent about her, as if she hadn't spent any time in the real world. "Of course they haven't said anything about it yet, but he warned me not to."

"You're crazy aren't you?"

"Of course not, what gave you that idea?" she responded in confusion. He raised a haughty eyebrow that suggested she knew perfectly well what he meant. 

She stretched lazily and then hopped onto his chest, oblivious to his cry of pain. He glared balefully at her as she dug her elbows into his chest in order to prop up her chin. She regarded him with unfeigned fascination, apparently intrigued by him for some unaccountable reason. Her warm breath fanned his face as she continued staring at him and he became acutely uncomfortable under such close scrutiny. 

"Tell everything about yourself," she told him suddenly, breaking the steadily unsettling silence that surrounded them. She lowered her arms and crossed them on his chest.

"If you tell me who these people are that hired you," he returned, fully aware that she wouldn't. Even though she was not human, her mind worked in the same simple logic that that lesser species utilized. He momentarily thought of shoving her off, but the prospect of facing excruciating agony deterred him. 

She sighed loudly in frustration and regarded him with a calculating look, "Fine then I'll have to get the present instead."

He was about to ask what she was talking about now when she cradled his face in her hands and kissed him. He was shocked, more so by his instantaneous reacting than by the action itself. At the first touch of her soft lips he was filled a strangely burning heat. Before he could explore or justify this she pulled away from him. 

"I will know everything about you with or without your involvement," she told him calmly. For once he was unable to say anything. She faded from sight, her countenance solemn. 

***

Okay, this one is a little shorter and all of it is rather odd. Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry for the long delay but I had other priorities. But I'm writing now so it's all good.  
  
  
Akaneko  
  
  
A reddish blur streaked through the amber void, several heads turned to watch its progression with curiosity. Legato gave a start as suddenly the slender redhead appeared before him. Triumph burned in the depths of her aqua eyes as she regarded him with sly determination.   
  
"I have a present for you," she announced with a guileful smile. "If I give it to you will you tell me all you know about your mast?"  
  
"Depends on what this present is," he replied with suspicion. He found the girl amusing, her claim to being a cat and all, but that didn't mean he trusted her. There was only one being he trusted and that was his master, Knives.   
  
Gently her cool hands cradled his face as she guided his head lower. He didn't resist, realizing the startling strength in those elegant hands as inescapable. He couldn't withhold a startled gasp as her soft lips touched his.  
  
Suddenly a tumult of images assaulted his mind, his senses. His master, this was everything his master had felt, wanted, thought. He rode a sort of delirious joy as his psyche was fully immersed in the essence of his master. Strangely, or perhaps not, the overriding impression was of a pain that delved deeper than mere flesh wounds.   
  
A moment later the connection was lost as the girl pulled away, breathless as well.  
  
"Now tell me everything," she commanded lowly, anticipation blazing from her narrowed eyes. Her once gentle hands gripped his head, nails digging in painfully. "I need to know." Mutely he nodded, his mind still reeling.   
  
****  
  
Wolfwood paused in his brooding as a familiar redhead came running by. Casually he reached out and grabbed her arm. The girl gave a small shriek as her feet continued without the rest of her. Suffice it to say she landed indelicately on her posterior.   
  
"Ow, that hurt," she declared from her sprawled position. "Hello Wolfwood." She gave him a beatific smile, oblivious to the fact that he was responsible for her fall.   
  
"You never answered my question," he stated. She stared at him with evident confusion, her mind racing for recollection.  
  
"What question?" she finally inquired with curiosity.   
  
"Why are we here?" he demanded, pulling her more or less gently to her feet.  
  
"I'm guessing that you're not talking about the meaning of life, right?" she responded with a cheerful smile. He groaned and ran a frustrated hand down his face. "Well, the truth is you all are here for me. I'm still a novice and all. Why, are you unhappy here?"  
  
"You think?" he retorted hotly. She made a sympathetic clucking sound then gave a cry of inspiration.  
  
"I'll get you a present to cheer you up," she told him with a kind smile. "Milly's the girl you like right? I'll get you a present from her."  
  
"What?" Suddenly realization of what she meant by a present dawned on him. "No, that's not necessary. I'm quite happy here, really. Don't bother yourself."  
  
"Don't be silly. It's no bother. I'll be back in a little while," she chirped, fading from view. The priest smacked himself in the forehead and began to pray that he was wrong in what he had assumed a 'present' entailed.   
  
****  
  
Another short one I know, but some is better than none, right? Please review and don't be afraid of the strangeness.   



	5. Chapter 5

Akaneko

A small red cat entered the kitchen hesitantly. It paused by the stove and sniffed the air cautiously. Its delicate nose wrinkled as it inhaled the aromas pervading the cooking area. Shaking its head in a very human-like motion it padded towards the interior of the house.

Humming softly a tall woman with long honey-brown hair sat reading a book as dinner burned on the stove. The cat sighed, green eyes reflecting innocent amusement, and meowed cutely to catch her attention. The woman looked up in surprise, her gaze swinging from the red animal to the black smoke rising from the cook pot. She issued a startled exclamation and tossed the book aside to rescue what was left of a chicken.

Akaneko grinned, which looked frightening being a cat and all, and waited patiently for Milly to come back. She had told Wolfwood she'd get him a present and she would. After all he deserved some happiness. 

"Thank you kitty, but I'm afraid I was too late." With that the woman chucked the blackened fowl out the nearest aperture. A masculine yelp of pain was heard from outside, but other than that nothing happened.

The woman resumed her position on the rocking chair and the cat joined her. Akaneko's dreamy purring filled the air as Milly absently stroked her silken fur. A moment later the cat was gone and in her place sat an elfin young woman, red hair cascading about her pale shoulders. Milly cried out in surprise, but that was all she managed before the girl grasped her face firmly and bestowed a smoldering kiss.

The cat-girl then vanished to leave a bewildered Milly staring at her empty lap, fingers resting gently upon her lips.

****

"Wolfwood?" the singsong voice echoed through the amber haze and reached the rueful man sitting on the ground and wishing for a smoke. A crimson streak raced towards him at an alarming speed. He only had a few moments to prepare himself before an excited scarlet haired girl mauled him. 

"I did it," she declared proudly, green eyes flashing in triumph. "A present from Milly."

"Oh no." He rubbed his face with his hand and sighed in resignation.

"Yep. Kuroneko doesn't know about it so don't tell him, okay?" She grinned cheerfully, revealing two delicately pointed canines. He looked up at her since her impact had forced him onto his back..

"You really don't listen to people, do you?" She continued to smile and leaned forward to deliver her present. "Hold on. Wait."

Carefully she kissed him and he felt Milly's essence course through the contact. A deep sadness resided there yet a sense of contentment regulated it to the background. Tranquility both comforting and lonely threaded through it like a mild spice. Something hot and wet slid down his cheeks and he knew he was crying. 

"She's alright Wolfwood. She can't cook, but she's happy," the girl whispered as she pulled away.

"I know." She wiped away the remained tears with the comfort of a mother.

"She hasn't forgotten you, but she has moved on in life."

"Thank you. I…" She laughed and crawled off of him to settle lazily on the ground next to him.

"No thanks are necessary. I wanted to make you happy, there's too much sorrow in the world." Akaneko yawned loudly and curled up. Moments later her soft breaths filled the amber haze and Wolfwood sat thinking of Milly. 

****

"Akaneko." The crimson-haired girl paused, casting a guilty glance over her shoulder. Her mentor, Kuroneko, stood there looking rather miffed and a tad annoyed.

"Yes? Is something wrong?" she asked innocently aqua eyes wide. He glowered at her in disappointment and the first trace of anger.

"What have you been doing?"

"Nothing, why?" she replied with feigned confusion.

"Is it true that you've revealed yourself to a _human_ and not just _them_?" he demanded. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and stared darkly at her. 

"Sort of, but it was for a good cause." She twisted her hands anxiously in the hem of white dress and traced obscure patterns in the floor with her toe.

"I'm listening."

"I…I wanted to make Mr. Wolfwood happy. He seemed sad so I wanted to cheer him up. That's all. She probably thinks it was a dream anyway. No harm done."

"Enough." He held up a hand to forestall anymore excuses. A weary sighed fled his mouth as he muttered something to himself. "They want you to keep a closer watch on Knives. There has been a general agreement that he requires twenty-four hour surveillance now that he has regained use of his legs."

"Really? Can I play with him too?" He gave her a hard look and she looked away. "Okay, just watching, no playing."

He laughed warmly and strode towards her. She accepted his embrace and rested her head against his shoulder.

"You are so young, you make me feel old," he murmured rocking her in his strong arms. She giggled and snuggled closer. 

"You're not that old. Only a few hundred years or so."

"Thanks for reminding me, kitten. Now go and start your new assignment and remember…"

"No playing and no revealing myself to the humans. I know, I know," she muttered as she vanished.


End file.
